I was thinking of an easy commercial that would show the power of bitcoin. The idea I had was to record the chat window while a conversation between a brother and sister is taking place. In it, the sister is traveling abroad and messages the brother to let him know that a local restaurant accepts bitcoin, but she didn't think to bring any. She asks if he can pay for her meal with bitcoin because she can avoid the currency conversion fee. The brother says no problem and brings up the Bitcoin client while the sister sends the address info. "Alright, I'm actually at the restaurant now. Their payment address is ... and its .2 bitcoin" The brother sends the funds and begins typing "Alright I sen-" but before he finishes typing he is interrupted by his sister "They got it!" He then reminds her that he'll want that .2 bitcoin when she gets back home to the States.

Bottom line, if you want people to get into bitcoin and get the word out there, you have to know how to sell it and that means picking which strength will entice a person.

For me, bitcoin's nerdiness does it all. It wouldn't even have to work as well as it does, I'd still be fascinated by the concept.

For normal fiat-filchers though, we have to find out what that person desires in a currency.

Do they want to launder money?

Buy drugs?

Evade taxes?

Obfuscate savings?

Avoid banks?

Hire an assassin?

Buy child porn?

Gamble?

Donate to wikileaks?

Get money across state/country lines?

Simplify their accounting?

Well said. I'd probably remove hire an assassin and buy child porn from the list, though.

Donating to wikileaks is not illegal, just difficult. Bitcoin makes it easier as it will most things.You might even add: fund terrorist, place human trafficking orders, kidnapping, blackmail, extortion, err wait. Those are done with fiat money. Nevermind.

Any significantly advanced cryptocurrency is indistinguishable from Ponzi Tulips.

I think a lot of people are intrigued by puzzles. I remember a few years back some firm over here put posters of a qr code (which back then hardly anyone knew what it was) all over the country. The whole thing went viral. In my humble opinion puzzles like this would be a decent way to promote bitcoin.

Look, you guys. I have RL work to do. But it's threads like this one that slow me down. There ain't a bad post in it, unless you consider the post with the list poor, which I don't, for it even adds value (quick side question: how many here think of Atlas every time they read the word 'value' within some other literature that's not related to Bitcoin?). Case in point, the Matthew's "bitcoin's nerdiness" phrase. I'm going to get back to that in sec, but first this:

I think a lot of people are intrigued by puzzles. I remember a few years back some firm over here put posters of a qr code (which back then hardly anyone knew what it was) all over the country. The whole thing went viral. In my humble opinion puzzles like this would be a decent way to promote bitcoin.

A link to some Bitcoin related site via a QR code that can be seen by the ISS. Who's on it? I suggest that it even works. The astronauts take a picture of it and the resolution is good enough for it to function. Instead of a barn raising (or sometimes razing) party, we'll have a QR lawn mowing party. That event, within itself, could bring awareness to Bitcoin. All we need is a big lawn. Question: What's the min/max lawn size we would need for such a project to work. In fact, it doesn't have to be a one-off project directed toward a main Bitcoin related site, but the following week, a different QR code is installed for some unrelated site, but they do accept Bitcoin. Corny? Yes! But we're thinking. In a sec, I'll get back onto the commercial aspect of this thread, for that's an idea I have that's doable.

This puzzle idea is very good. Place QR codes all over the globe that direct to different pages of a website. They are all clues to a grand prize. Semantics is important here, for the grand prize will be Bitcoin. Clue 12, leads one to page 12 of a newly created website that only has a one or two sentence clue. The only link on the site directs the reader to sponsor of that page. (shit! I'm thinking faster than I can type) Allow me to give you an example:

The following pages were found via a QR code that was scanned by the finder of code and curious as to were it leads. What the finder found was just a QR code with only the word(s) Clue 12 (or whatever number) on it. He's directed to a page on a website:

Clue 12: She is harnessed for a long journey; on her back she carries an entire store of wool. She walks without rest, and sees with eyes full of strangeness. The wool merchant has forgotten to come to get her, and she is ready.

Clue 934:(934 is this business's street address) Why do we soak our chickpeas overnight and then boil them for hours when we could simply use canned chickpeas for our hummus?

The chances are good, that you know where all the above will link to. But persons seeing this for the first time will be introduced to Bitcoin. They'll start amassing the clues. A forum is set up to discuss the clues, or use this forum. Corny? Yes! Doable? Probably so. Just a tad of tweaking, it could even be monetized.

Not onto the commercial idea. I have this cabbie in Chicago that has branded himself the ChicagoCabbie. Perhaps you've heard of him. He just started accepting Bitcoin. He has video equipment and not afraid to use it. We have a member here on BitcoinTalk that goes to college in Chicago. Maybe he's a geek. If not, perhaps he'll want to portray one in a commercial with a couple of his college geeks buds. He's the joint.

The commercial consist of ChicagoCabbie picking up 3 geeks that need to go to the Adler Planetarium. While in the cab, they're discussing technical shit related to the universe. They're excited. The cabbie is seen as someone that's interested in their conversation, but doesn't say a word until the end after the lads pay their fare with Bitcoin. Prior to the lads departing, the cabbie relays to the boys a set of coordinates they should look into while at the planetarium. The Joint, looking puzzled, says we'll do that. The real set of coordinates could be of Planet X. Then a tagline or voice over: Cabbies hear everything! Pause. But this advert/ad/commercial is not about cabbies. Fade in the Bitcoin Logo (with a link).

What I thought would be nice is if some of us would pledge some bitcoins so the reward would be substantial (therefore giving real incentive to play this game), make several groups of (trustworthy) people that would design independent problems that would be joined together in the end, so no one would have the complete solution. These problems should be designed in such a way that in the end every one would be properly educated about bitcoin.

What I thought would be nice is if some of us would pledge some bitcoins so the reward would be substantial (therefore giving real incentive to play this game), make several groups of (trustworthy) people that would design independent problems that would be joined together in the end, so no one would have the complete solution. These problems should be designed in such a way that in the end every one would be properly educated about bitcoin.

Before I even got to the end of your post, I figured out a way to create a reward without having to pledge and build a pool. The game/problem/puzzle part will need a little more tweeting, now that you have offered up come good points. I'll pen what I have in a couple hours for readers to mull over.

What I thought would be nice is if some of us would pledge some bitcoins so the reward would be substantial (therefore giving real incentive to play this game), make several groups of (trustworthy) people that would design independent problems that would be joined together in the end, so no one would have the complete solution. These problems should be designed in such a way that in the end every one would be properly educated about bitcoin.

Before I even got to the end of your post, I figured out a way to create a reward without having to pledge and build a pool. The game/problem/puzzle part will need a little more tweeting, now that you have offered up come good points. I'll pen what I have in a couple hours for readers to mull over.

Now about that Cabbie Commercial Idea? Thoughts?

~Bruno~

I'm all for it, I just wouldn't want this guy getting overwhelmed by so many bitcoin related ideas...

Not a bad idea and wouldn't be too expensive to shoot. Getting it aired widely might be a problem though. Too bad this didn't come up before now. Might have been a great community project for a Super Bowl commercial.

I am in desperate need of a new laptop to further my Bitcoin related development. Anything you can donate is appreciated. Goal is $1,000 USD. Bitcoin address: 1ByQRLuVQHUdJoTDm6UtaFu2KDemjBQaRQ Thank you!

What I thought would be nice is if some of us would pledge some bitcoins so the reward would be substantial (therefore giving real incentive to play this game), make several groups of (trustworthy) people that would design independent problems that would be joined together in the end, so no one would have the complete solution. These problems should be designed in such a way that in the end every one would be properly educated about bitcoin.

Before I even got to the end of your post, I figured out a way to create a reward without having to pledge and build a pool. The game/problem/puzzle part will need a little more tweeting, now that you have offered up come good points. I'll pen what I have in a couple hours for readers to mull over.

Now about that Cabbie Commercial Idea? Thoughts?

~Bruno~

I'm all for it, I just wouldn't want this guy getting overwhelmed by so many bitcoin related ideas...

He's cool! Think of him this way. He's just a regular guy, with a regular job, supporting an average family. He's enjoying his 15 minutes of fame with the hope of providing for his family that much more. If Twitter allows him to put a few more bucks in his coffer, he'll continue to keep that aspect up. If the acceptance of Bitcoin can provide a few more spending dollars, he'll be on that, too. He's well aware of his brand--ChicagoCabbie. And he's not going to do anything to hurt that brand or, for that matter, the outfit he leases from--Flash Cab.

Not a bad idea and wouldn't be too expensive to shoot. Getting it aired widely might be a problem though. Too bad this didn't come up before now. Might have been a great community project for a Super Bowl commercial.

That commercial idea I outlined above would work exactly the same for a myriad of products and service. Just change the people, accepts cash at the end of the ride, adds his unexpected comment, keep "Cabbies here everything" (or cabbies are in the know more than you think), and change the last line to reflect the product or service being hawked.

Example:

Three women are in the cab discussing feminine protection. Their talking about various brands, being cautious, etc. After paying the fare and about to walk away, the driver says to them that his wife uses Alwaysr, with and without wings. They pause (taken slightly aback), but thank him. Tagline or voice over: Cabbies are in the know more than you think. But this advert is not about cabbies. It's about Always Protection.

Example:

Two guys and a gal are in the back of the cab trying to get a speech down in a foreign language--Portuguese. After paying the fare, the cabbie says, "Pedra de rosetta seguinte do uso do tempo." (Next time use Rosetta Stone. {possibly wrong translation, but you get the gist}) Tagline or voice over: Cabbies are in the know more than you think. But this advert is not about cabbies. It's about learning a language--fast!

See where I'm going? The same character, basically the same scene, different people, different product, same first half of tagline, different pitch at the end. On the surface, the above two examples, or hundreds like them, have nothing to do with Bitcoin. But Bitcoin would be the first commercial of this meme bringing awareness to Bitcoin directly and indirectly.